Chapter 104 Update

Chapter 104 Update

Jing Xi’s chin knocked against Xie Qingfeng’s collarbone, making him inhale sharply from the pain. Clearly, Jing Xi was in more pain, uttering a muffled sound.

Xie Qingfeng could feel Jing Xi's painful breath on his neck, which was uncomfortable, but what made him even more uneasy was their close proximity. He stiffened, wanting to push Jing Xi away but hesitated, thinking Jing Xi was catching his breath from the impact, and waited awkwardly.

After half a minute, not only did Jing Xi not move, but his head also drooped, resting his forehead in the nape of Xie Qingfeng’s neck.

Jing Xi continued to breathe softly, forcing Xie Qingfeng to endure. Finally, he complained, “Is it that bad? The force of impact is mutual; I was hit too.” He felt sure there must be a bruise on his collarbone.

Jing Xi kept inhaling softly, but upon hearing Xie Qingfeng's voice, he lifted his head. In the dim candlelight, Xie Qingfeng clearly saw Jing Xi’s bright eyes as he whispered breathily, “Qingfeng, you smell so good.”

Unsure, he took another sniff.

Xie Qingfeng: "..."

Confirming that he hadn’t misheard and seeing Jing Xi’s bright, shining eyes in the darkness, Xie Qingfeng let out an exasperated laugh. So, he thought Jing Xi was genuinely hurt from the bump, but it turned out Jing Xi was fine, not only fine but also sniffing around, moving his head to the other side of Xie Qingfeng’s neck to inhale the scent.

A vein on Xie Qingfeng's forehead throbbed, nearly slapping him out of irritation but he reminded himself to stay calm: this is a drunk man, no need to stoop to his level.

Still, he couldn’t help but grind his teeth in a low voice: “Have you had enough sniffing? Isn’t this the fragrance of the flowers you bought? If you want to smell them, go sniff your own bouquet.”

He had just embraced the bouquet, leaving its scent on himself, but Jing Xi held it even longer, so he should be the one smelling like it!

But Jing Xi, as if he hadn’t heard, kept sniffing around, even nuzzling his head back and forth on Xie Qingfeng’s neck. The warm breath on his neck made Xie Qingfeng feel like he was starting to sweat: “Are you a dog?”

As Xie Qingfeng raised his hand to push him away, Jing Xi suddenly looked up with bright eyes in the dark and barked, “Woof!”

Xie Qingfeng's expression froze, staring incredulously at Jing Xi, forgetting to push him away.

Emboldened by the lack of denial, Jing Xi got even more into his act, panting like a dog with his tongue out, even accidentally licking Xie Qingfeng’s neck.

Feeling the wetness on his neck, Xie Qingfeng's face changed, and he pushed Jing Xi away forcefully.

A loud thud in the darkness startled Xie Qingfeng. He quickly turned on the light, and the room suddenly brightened. Squinting for a moment, he then saw Jing Xi lying stiffly on the floor, having hit the back of his head.

Fortunately, it was a wooden floor with a carpet, but the thud still gave Xie Qingfeng a scare.

He crouched down to check on Jing Xi, relieved to see his eyes still open: “Are you alright?”

Jing Xi blinked, then blinked again, not moving, just looking at him, his eyes beginning to redden.

Feeling guilty, Xie Qingfeng carefully helped him up, letting Jing Xi rest his head on his lap. He felt a bump on the back of Jing Xi’s head and pressed it gently, causing Jing Xi to inhale sharply, looking even more aggrieved.

Jing Xi just looked at him pitifully, not saying a word.

Xie Qingfeng, feeling guilty, simply used his spiritual energy in the palm of his hand on the bump at the back of Jing Xi’s head, which soon disappeared.

Relieved, Xie Qingfeng checked carefully for other injuries, ensuring there were no other issues before relaxing. But when he looked down, he found Jing Xi lying and gazing up at him, a dazed expression on his face, his eyes following Xie Qingfeng’s movements intently, brows furrowed as if troubled.

Xie Qingfeng, concerned he might have another injury, asked: “Did you hit somewhere else?”

Jing Xi pursed his lips, his gaze slightly unfocused, looking at Xie Qingfeng, then again, mumbling softly, “Uncomfortable.”

Xie Qingfeng, on high alert, carefully felt Jing Xi’s head again: “There’s no other injury, why would you feel uncomfortable? Where does it hurt?”

Could it be that he fell and hurt another part of his body?

At that moment, Jing Xi grasped Xie Qingfeng’s hand and pulled it down, still frowning and muttering, pulling Xie Qingfeng’s hand to his chest: “Thumping, uncomfortable…”

Confused, Xie Qingfeng placed his palm on Jing Xi's chest, feeling his heart beating fast. Could the fall have affected some nerve in his head that influenced his heart?

Xie Qingfeng’s expression grew more serious, not immediately realizing something was off until Jing Xi guided his hand further down, finally resting it somewhere, mumbling but with bright, expectant eyes: “Uncomfortable…”

Xie Qingfeng finally realized what was happening, his brow twitching, his expression becoming increasingly stiff, and then his face turned completely green.

……

The next day, Jing Xi woke up with a splitting headache, roused by the incessant ringing of his phone.

The phone rang over and over, but he didn’t answer, struggling to wake up from his deep sleep until finally opening his eyes.

Upon opening his eyes, he instinctively closed them again due to the brightness. Although the curtains in the living room were drawn, they weren’t blackout curtains. Being on the top floor, the light from outside shone through, making the living room exceptionally bright.

Jing Xi rubbed his aching temples, reaching blindly for his phone with his other hand. Finally finding it in his pocket, he pressed the button to silence it without even opening his eyes.

The ringing finally stopped, and all was quiet.

As Jing Xi massaged his forehead, he suddenly remembered something and his eyes flew open: Wait, wasn't he at the banquet when he received the message about the national master coming? He even had a bouquet prepared.

He distinctly remembered having dinner with the national master, but what happened afterward was a blur.

His memory was usually sharp, so to forget so completely was unusual; it had happened once before…

Jing Xi sat up abruptly, wincing as he touched his forehead and found it painfully tender, as if he had been struck.

Thankfully, he could endure the pain. Turning his head, he noticed the candles were only half-burnt, and the flowers were still in the entrance. But he had spent the night on the living room carpet, covered with a thin blanket.

Looking down at the blanket, Jing Xi had a foreboding feeling.

His phone rang again. It was Liang Chenglei, informing him that his assistant called to say he hadn’t shown up for work.

Jing Xi responded casually, saying he would come in the afternoon.

After freshening up, he immediately went to the hotel room Xie Qingfeng had stayed in last night to look for him.

Just as he reached the door, it opened, but instead of Xie Qingfeng, a cleaning lady emerged.

Jing Xi was taken aback: “Where is the guest who stayed here last night?”

The cleaning lady glanced at him: “They checked out at six in the morning.”

On his way back, Jing Xi had an ominous feeling, especially after noticing in the mirror while washing up that not only was his chin red, but there was also a bump on his forehead, as if someone had punched him.

The last thing he remembered from the previous night was drinking with the national master. Clearly, the national master would never let him get beaten like that, unless the one who hit him was the national master himself.

Jing Xi realized that not only had the national master hit him last night, but he also left him to sleep on the living room carpet. Although a blanket was provided, the fact that he wasn’t moved to the bed suggested that he must have done something terribly offensive, making the national master not even want to touch him.

Damn, did he do something inappropriate to the national master while drunk last night?

Jing Xi, in a daze, returned to his room door and took out his phone, not daring to ask, until Hao Jixin sent a message around noon.

[Jin Jin Jin: ??? Damn, what did you do to upset the master? He took an early flight back this morning? He's already home; calculating the time, didn't he rush back around six or seven?]

Jing Xi’s eyelids twitched, and his heart sank further: [How did he seem... mood-wise?]

[Jin Jin Jin: Mood? Okay, I guess? But why the hurry today?]

[Jing: If I said I don’t know either, would you believe me?]

[Jin Jin Jin: ??? [ConfusedPuppy.jpg] [WhatDoYouThink.jpg]]

[Jing: I got drunk yesterday, might have upset him, but I don’t remember.]

[Jin Jin Jin: You’re doomed.]

Jing Xi, looking at these three words, also felt that he was probably in deep trouble.

Could it be that he acted out in his drunken state, doing things he only dreamed of doing with the national master? After all, the last time he was drunk, the national master not only wasn’t angry but even forgave him.

But this time, the outcome was completely the opposite...

Jing Xi took a deep breath and sent a tentative message.

Xie Qingfeng, having not slept well last night and after a long flight, felt unusually tired. After replying to Hao Jixin's message, he planned to get some sleep.

After taking a bath and drying his hair, he saw his phone light up but decided to ignore it, lying down and closing his eyes, trying not to pay attention to his phone. However, after lying there for half an hour without falling asleep, he sighed silently, opened his eyes, and checked his phone. As expected, it was a message from Jing Xi.

[Jing: [Hey, good afternoon.jpg] Why did you leave so early? I didn’t even get to see you off, sorry about that.]

Xie Qingfeng bit his back teeth as he read the message, realizing Jing Xi had forgotten again. Recalling last night’s events, his face inexplicably heated up, and feeling uncomfortable, he turned off his phone after glancing at the hand holding it.

Jing Xi anxiously waited the whole afternoon without a reply, feeling utterly dejected.

Feeling like he was losing his national master, he didn’t care about work anymore. Zhu Zong could manage remotely via video, or he could pull Liang Chenglei in for a day or two. As soon as his workday ended at five, he rushed to the airport and flew back.

Xie Qingfeng slept the entire afternoon. After eating something, he began to meditate, blocking out his surroundings. Initially, it was hard to settle his mind, but as he calmed down, time passed quickly, and before he knew it, several hours had gone by.

After taking a shower and changing into clean clothes, he felt a bit hungry as he dried his hair and stepped out of his room, removing the barrier around him.

Halfway to the fridge, he paused, feeling something off. He frowned towards the door, staring at it silently until the fridge’s prolonged open-door alarm sounded.

Silently closing the fridge, Xie Qingfeng glanced at the clock, noting it was 4 AM. Why would he be at the door at this hour?

Xie Qingfeng didn’t want to deal with him initially, but he was already aware that Jing Xi was at the door, unsure if he had rung the bell or if it went unheard due to the barrier.

By now, Jing Xi would have heard him moving around. No reaction - was this some kind of self-pity tactic?

Xie Qingfeng reopened the fridge, cooked a pot of noodles, served a bowl for himself, and started eating at the table. After a few bites, he sighed silently, put down his chopsticks, and opened the door.

As expected, the door opened to reveal Jing Xi, sitting like an abandoned puppy, wearing a mask and hat, revealing only his pitiful eyes. He seemed rushed or careless, wearing just a thin sweater and coat.